The teacher shortage in California continues as a problem across the state. Districts in less desirable locations have a bigger problem, as the teachers who are fully credentialed have choices in where they may enter the classroom. Desirable of course is in the heart and mind of the individual. Generally speaking though that term would apply to crime ridden areas or areas that are out in geological areas that don’t have much to offer, or in poverty-stricken areas, which are all over the state.

In the last bit I wrote about the teacher shortage, I pointed out that districts are offering signing bonuses and subsidized housing. Districts are signing up students who haven’t graduated and obtained their provisional credentials yet, on the hopes that they will graduate in time to enter the classroom. Supply and demand are in play now, just as they always have been.

The question that has been asked about all of that is why don’t the districts simply pay teachers enough so that they don’t need subsidized housing or signing bonuses. Perhaps the just graduated would show up at a district HR department to apply for the job without having been signed to a contract before they have finished their studies.

It’s a matter of economics. In several areas around the state the ability of normal people to own homes doesn’t exist. The rental markets are simply loony. It takes very large, consistent paychecks, maybe two of them, to either buy a house or rent a decent apartment. When you are in the beginning stages of any career the very large part isn’t generally followed with the word “paycheck”. In other areas, the community conditions are so underwhelming not many people want to spend a career there.

Here are the economics. A signing bonus is a one time event. The bonus is paid, and that’s the end of it. Signing up ed students still in classes doesn’t have to cost anything. Subsidized housing is time limited–teachers can only stay for a few years– and it also brings in cash to the district, and probably has a tax advantage of some kind for the district as well. While the districts who offer such an offer had to spend money to either build or otherwise obtain the apartment complexes, they have real property that can be sold when they are no longer needed. In short, the districts are doing OK with these options.

Paying teachers enough to live in these communities, the ones that have run down houses that are past being fixer uppers that sell for a million dollars, which is squarely in the loony bin category, or luring them to not very comfortable communities, is an ongoing expense. It is far more expensive to up the pay scale. If the scale goes up that much at the entry level, it goes up throughout the entire scale. It is an ongoing expense rather than a short term one. Considering that teachers make up the bulk of the employees, it adds up to a very large commitment.

It’s simply more economical to do just about anything else. As always, assume nothing, verify everything.